home resales increased 7.8% last month, and the commerce department says new construction was up more than 2% last month from july. the encouraging housing news gave the stocks a lift. the dow jones industrial gained 13 points while the nasdaq gained four points. chick-fil-a apparently is backing away from the controversy over gay rights and marriage. the restaurant chain issue ad statement wednesday saying it had stopped funding organizations opposed to same sex marriage. the company's president sparked a controversy during the summer when he said he opposed same sex marriage. >>> the number of americans facing a penalty for not buying health insurance is much higher than previous estimates. the nonpartisan congressional budget office says the penalty will hit almost 6 million americans, most would be middle class. the figure is 50% higher than the cbo's previous estimate. the average penalty will cost about $1,200. >>> microsoft co-founder bill gates topped "forbes" magazine annual list as the richest man in america as he has in previous years. but mark zuckerberg was the biggest lo